Section 32 Buyout Contracts

The guaranteed financial solution that came with hidden risks too high for cautious investors.

Section 32 Buyout Contracts, or Pension Buyout Bonds, offered some useful guarantees and potential advantages to investors. Even so, they often came with specific drawbacks and a level of risk that made them a poor choice for naturally cautious people. If the ins and outs or level of risk weren’t clearly explained, you could have a strong case for compensation – it all depends on things like your risk profile and investing context. To quickly find out whether you were mis-sold a Section 32 Buyout Contract, and whether your case for compensation is a good one, you can call our team free of charge and with no strings attached. With just a few simple questions they’ll piece together your pension history and assess your situation, then let you know how much money they could potentially win back on your behalf, without any upfront fees.

Background of section 32 buyouts or pension buyout bonds

Also known as pension buyout bonds, section 32 contracts were designed to accept transfer values from, primarily, final salary pension schemes. Although enjoying some valuable guarantees, an individual’s eventual Section 32 pension benefits may not be as high as those offered by the main employer’s scheme, but may be higher than a personal pension.

Benefits from an employer’s final salary pension scheme

When you leave service before reaching pension age, this scheme grants an annual pension (your ‘preserved pension’) which then increases, each year, after your date of leaving. These increases are typically granted in line with increases in price inflation but some schemes grant more generous increases to part of your pension: up to 8.5%, in fact.

Benefits transferred from a final salary pension scheme to a Section 32 buyout

Part of the benefits transferred over will benefit from the same level of guaranteed increases offered by the employer’s scheme (this is known as the Guaranteed Minimum Pension – GMP) but the remainder will benefit or suffer from the performance of an investment fund. There are, however, circumstances in which the value of the holding in the investment fund may be swallowed up in meeting the cost of the GMP.

You may especially have a legitimatepension claimif the risks of losing valuable guarantees were not explained to you when you were advised to transfer to a Section 32 buyout.

Benefits transferred from a final salary pension scheme to a personal pension

There are no guarantees within the personal pension. The pension scheme member’s benefits will be entirely dependent on the performance of investments within the Personal Fund. This lack of guarantees by no means infers that a personal pension transfer represents bad advice; it all depends on factors such as the member’s risk profile and the desire for death benefits.

We understand the need to keep our clients completely updated on the claims process.

Even if the adviser concerned is no longer trading, we can still look to claim on your behalf to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

You do not need to use a claims management company to make your complaint to your pension provider/adviser, and if your complaint is not successful you can refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service yourself for free or if your adviser is no longer trading you can refer it to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme for free.

We are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Our registration is recorded on the websitehttps://register.fca.org.uk/ (FRN: 833645). Formerly known as Pensions Claims Centre Limited. Incorporated in England.